Do you all remember what you did to help elect Obama?

[LiberalAndProud]

Why can't we do that to help pass Affordable Quality Universal Health Insurance reform? Is the cause less important than the man?

Did you donate?
If you did, donate NOW for Affordable Quality Universal Health Insurance.
https://donate.barackobama.com/page/contribute/dnc08HealthCare

Did you go door to door to speak with your neighbors? Are you doing that now?

Did you declare your support?
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/organizingforhealthcare2

Obama is our President because we cared enough to do something. We cannot expect Obama to make this historic reform on his own. We really need to quit bellyaching and get back to work.

[meegbear]

1. I voted for him!

QED

[derby378]

2. If Obama guarantees a strong public option, that sounds good

Otherwise, all bets are off. I've been communicating this to the local Organizing for America rep, too.

[LiberalAndProud]

7. Find another way to make it affordable.

Is there another way? If there is only one answer to that, then there it is. I don't care if it's public, if it is AFFORDABLE. I truly do not.

What if private insurers agreed (or were required) to price policies on a sliding scale? What then?

[MNDemNY]

13. Oh, yes, the corporations will do the right thing. They CARE!

[LiberalAndProud]

19. Regulate them.

If we do not have a public option, health insurers must be HEAVILY regulated. Especially if I am required to buy their product.

[MNDemNY]

20. Good luck with that.

There is a corporatist in the white house.

[LiberalAndProud]

28. I would like this attitude to die. Obama is working his ass off.

Your response reminds me of a pouty three-year-old child who isn't getting candy at the checkout counter. We are not going to get anything unless WE do SOMETHING.

Yes, Corporate America is very powerful. And unless we take a stand, we are complicit.

[MNDemNY]

46. Obama HAS taken a stand. He IS complicit.

[Naturyl]

51. Obama may be working his ass off

But is he working for US?

[mmonk]

27. Like that will work? We just went through a financial crisis

because politicians when given campaign money from corporate lobbyists will remove regulations when they get the chance. Remember Glass-Steagall?

[LiberalAndProud]

40. Oh lord, do I. The public trust was betrayed.

It's true that what is regulated can be de-regulated. Which has put the world in rather a mess.

Universal Medicare is my choice. It is not what Obama promised us. If you voted for him believing that he did ... what can I say? Hillary and Obama were duking it out during the primaries over plans that mirrored Nixon's.

I hadn't graduated from high school yet when Nixon introduced that legislation. Ted Kennedy stood firm for universal health care. I read that he would not have done the same if given a second chance.

[barbiegeek]

34. Now that's a Health Care Signs

[derby378]

15. That still leaves health care in the hands of Big Insurance

The people should have a right to health care that is not subject to the whims and pleasure of a corporate bureaucracy that is made part of the government by default.

No public option, no health care reform. Either we go all in or go home. We've waited long enough.

[LiberalAndProud]

23. That's what I said. They called it HillaryCare and it died.

That was 15 (? is that possible) years ago. I was 35. I will be 50 soon. How long are you willing to wait for change?

Do you think we will elect a president who is better at this than Obama? Or a Senator? They are our representatives. We are the government.

Do you think there will be a better opportunity to get something done? Maybe. Oh, could be.

[Mystayya]

32. And there is the spin. n/t

[LiberalAndProud]

48. Spin. If you say so.

Or it could be cold, stark reality.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/08/who-are-the-13-senate-democrats-holding-out-on-the-public-option.php

Who Are the 13 Senate Democrats Holding Out On the Public Option?
Brian Beutler | August 27, 2009, 2:28PM

Two crucial questions hang over the Senate. Will it pass Democrat-only health care reforms? And can a public option survive the whims of the so-called budget reconciliation process?

If the answer to both questions is yes, then the public option could survive in the stasis-oriented upper chamber. But if the answer to the second question is "no," then the Democrats will a lot of whipping to do. Below are the key hold outs.

Do your own headcounts. Decide if you want something or nothing, because we aren't going to get everything. And the more I watch people dig in their heels -- public option or nothing, the more I think, we're going to get nothing.



.again.

[Buzz Clik]

11. Guarantee? How can he possibly do that?

By what mechanism could President Obama guarantee a public option?

[derby378]

18. By vetoing any reform package that doesn't include it

The Republicans are hoping to call Obama's bluff. No more.

[Buzz Clik]

22. How does that guarantee anything but NO health care reform at all?

The GOP has made it clear that they want the status quo. Promising a veto would actually energize the GOP to sabotage the bill in any way possible, and they win.

[Vincardog]

21. Obama can clearly state that he works for US and Demand that the bill includes Quality Affordable

Non profit Government run Public Option. That is unless he is willing to go all the way and stand for

SINGLE PAYER.

[Buzz Clik]

24. Right. That would make for an inspirational speech. And, it would guarantee nothing.

[Vincardog]

25. it would guarantee more that Obama telling us liberals to sit down and shut up

[Buzz Clik]

30. ... which he has not done. But, I agree, I would not like it if he said that.

[Vincardog]

33. You do not remember when we ran adds criticizing Democratic Congress Critters for not supporting

Health Care Reform and Obama told us to quit it?

[LiberalAndProud]

54. Those ads

weren't helpful in Ben Nelson's bailiwick. I can attest to that.

[LiberalAndProud]

31. Sometimes I'd like to tell us liberals to shut up.

Because it appears that we've already sat down. Obama cannot do this alone.

[Vincardog]

36. What can't he do alone? Compromise away what he campaigned on and we elected him to do?

He campaigned on Single Payer.
He campaigned on getting us out of Iraq.
He campaigned on ending torture.
What has he done?

[LiberalAndProud]

42. This isn't about Obama.

I am very sorry that you've been disappointed in his performance. Sincerely. Maybe he hasn't done enough. You could be right about that. Maybe he's appointed the devil's minions for every cabinet post. Maybe you are correct about every criticism. You have been betrayed. That must sting.

And still we can't afford to see a doctor, or have that life-saving test.

[LiberalAndProud]

43. When did he campaign on single payer?

I am aware that he has supported single payer in the past, but during the campaign? Am I mis-remembering?

[bunkerbuster1]

45. No. He specifically said that'd be his choice if he were starting from scratch.

He never said at any time during the Presidential campaign that he would push for single payer. Hillary brought it up during their last primary debate--Obama couldn't have been clearer.

Mind you I wish he had pushed for single payer (and that he would, now) but facts is facts.

[Buzz Clik]

44. He campaigned on single payer? Not that I recall. The speech I attended...

... had him pitching the public option.

He campaigned to get us out of Iraq in 16 months. We're out of the cities and making moves to be gone in 16 months.

We ended torture.

You're looking for reasons to be upset, and that's fine, but you've chosen the wrong reasons.

[Naturyl]

52. What's he trying to do alone?

Get us single-payer? Absolutely not. Get us a public option as a consolation prize? Maybe, maybe not. Make sure the insurance companies aren't too angry with whatever finally emerges? Definitely.

[LiberalAndProud]

38. So you don't support guaranteed choice.

I thought that was a selling point, but we pick our own hills to die on, I guess.

[skier_]

3. It really seems like

his support is dropping, but you're right. How does everyone except for him to do this by himself? He is what the country needs, but we need to help him.

[MNDemNY]

4. I wish he seemed more aware of who did what for him.

The corporation is STILL king.

[PeaceDreamer]

5. Obama doesn't need our help

Look, he is in the office. He can decide the platform to pitch. He has decided against the public option and in my opinion is a complete sellout. I feel I wasted my vote with him.

[LiberalAndProud]

10. Bless your heart. Welcome to DU.maybe.

:hi:

[Buzz Clik]

14. sigh. Yet another one weighs in...

[liberal N proud]

6. I had a phone call more than a month ago from the campaign

At the time they were looking for volunteers to do the same things they did in the election.

Organizing
Collecting data
Knocking on doors

Haven't heard a word since.

[LiberalAndProud]

17. Are there any meet-ups doing this?

This was Teddy's cause. Can't we do this? It makes me weep to think that we would let this opportunity pass. I know this can be done. I watch the teabaggers and the haters and my heart screams

Not ! This ! Time!

[reflection]

8. I will continue to burn up the phone lines and emails

and try to educate those around me.

But I'll not donate another thin dime. This is not a money issue. This is an ideology issue. The messages are out. It's time for the politicians to choose sides and deal with the political consequences.

(edited for grammar)

[Buzz Clik]

9. k&r

[Anti-Republician]

12. I agree.

Us as Democrats has to do more than what we are doing about getting healthcare reform out there. I see more Republicians coming out to these ''Townhall meetings'' and letting their voices be heard. We have to come up with our own organized groups, and tour around the country, getting the real facts about healthcare reform out there. We CANNOT let these republicians speak for us, while we sit here in silence. We have to get off our asses, raise money, tour around the country, and have EDUCATED arugments about healthcare.

[Laelth]

26. Welcome to DU.

:dem:

-Laelth

[livetohike]

35. Welcome to DU!

:hi:

[BlooInBloo]

16. It's so much funner to sit back and let Daddy do it - Daddy can do ANYTHING!

[elocs]

29. I voted for Obama hoping for a strong leader, one to draw a line in the sand

and stand up to the Republicans. In fact, the most important thing that millions of us did for Obama is to vote for him. He needs to twist arms and do the tough things that need to be done to get healthcare reform accomplished and not allow it to be compromised away. No more Mr. Nice Guy, no more worrying about bipartisanship, it's time to get tough and get the job done from the top.

[LiberalAndProud]

49. It's not the Republicans.

Obama doesn't have the support of his own party. But he's supposed to fix everything. NOW GODDAMNIT!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=6445218&mesg_id=6451081

[kjackson227]

37. Thank you for this very important post :)

[Stinky The Clown]

39. You know why we can't do as you suggest?

There's no LEADERSHIP.

[LiberalAndProud]

41. Did you follow the links?

[Stinky The Clown]

47. Links ain't leadership.

Links are links to some internet crap or other. Yes, I say that not even caring where they lead. If my neighbor and your neighbor don't know it, then its worthless.

[Naturyl]

50. Hold on a sec...

Why donate to Obama for "Affordable Quality Universal Health Insurance?" Is there any indication actually Obama supports that?

[LiberalAndProud]

53. What do you think?

President Obama has announced three bedrock requirements for real health insurance reform:

◦Reduce Costs — Rising health care costs are crushing the budgets of governments, businesses, individuals and families and they must be brought under control
◦Guarantee Choice — Every American must have the freedom to choose their plan and doctor – including the choice of a public insurance option
◦Ensure Quality Care for All — All Americans must have quality and affordable health care

http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/organizingforhealthcare2

[mdmc]

55. real